On Friday, April 5th, at Istrana Air Base (North-East Italy), Homebase of the 51st Fighter Wing of the Italian Air Force, the phase-out ceremony of the AMX took place.

The event was attended by ItAF Chief of Staff Gen. Luca Goretti and thousands of people (former pilots and technicians, enthusiasts, and ItAF personnel).

It was an exciting 35-year flight with several missions in Italy and abroad for (maybe) one of the most underrated aircraft in the Italian Air Force's recent history. It was not the perfect fighter jet, as reasonably, as it does not have the appearance of a bomber, but believe it or not, the AMX has been the ItAF's most used fighter for operations overseas since the end of WWII.

One of the jets showed off a dedicated special livery to celebrate the AMX and its “worldwide” deployment.

The full Gallery from the Spotters Day is available here

The last Italian AMXs belong to the 132nd Squadron of the 51st Fighter Wing, the only ItAF squadron operating two different types of aircraft simultaneously: the Typhoons and the AMXs.

The flight operations started with the take-off of AMX’s EFAs. After several flybys, a small formation of the Frecce Tricolori joined the AMXs formation for an emotional flyby together before performing their display as part of their winter training session. After that, flybys with the participation of other ItAF aircrafts (F-35 and Tornado) thrilled the audience before the start of the official ceremony on the ground.

The day marked the end of a long chapter of the ItAF’s history. As one door closes, another opens, but where does it lead? Rumours state that those retired AMXs will soon be transferred to ItAF Piacenza Airbase to join the restored G.91. This could be the beginning of a future Italian heritage flying team.

The AMX

The AMX is a ground-attack aircraft jointly developed by Brazil and Italy. The AMX project (Aeritalia Macchi Experimental) was born during the early 1970s when the Italian manufacturer Aermacchi conducted a design study on a prospective light ground attack aircraft (designated MB-340). When, in 1977, the ItAF issued a requirement for 187 new-build strike fighters, which were to replace its existing Aeritalia G.91 in the close air support role, the AMX seemed to be the right choice. In 1980, the Brazilian government announced that they intended to participate in the program in order to provide a replacement for the Aermacchi MB-326. As a result of a memorandum between Italy and Brazil for the type's joint development in 1981, AMX International, an Italian-Brazilian joint venture, was formed to develop, manufacture, and market the aircraft.

The AMX (designated A-11 in 2006) was nicknamed "Ghibli" by the Italian Air Force and A-1 by the Brazilian Air Force (FAB, Força Aerea Brasileira). The Italian name “Ghibli” is taken from the hot, dry wind in the Libyan desert.

The AMX is a conventional shoulder-winged monoplane. It is mainly made up of aluminum, however elements such as the tail fin and elevators use carbon-fiber composite materials.

The AMX is equipped with a hybrid flight control system: a fly-by-wire control system to operate flight controls such as the spoilers, rudder and variable incidence tailplane and a dual-redundant hydraulic system to operate the ailerons and elevators. The “Ghibli” wing is fitted with both leading edge slats and trailing edge flaps and over-wing spoilers ahead of the flaps. The spoilers also work as air brakes and dump lift dumpers.

The (single) engine is the Rolls-Royce Spey turbofan engine. Although it was heavier and less modern than some of the available alternatives, this engine was chosen because it was considered to be reliable, relatively cheap, and free of export restrictions.

The main difference between Brazilian and Italian AMX is the avionics: Italian aircraft were equipped with various NATO systems that were considered redundant in the South American theatre.

A total payload of up to 2.000lb may be carried upon the centerline and the two innermost under-wing pylons, while the outer pylons can carry up to 1.000lb allowing the AMX to be able to carry various types of munitions.

The Italian Air Force ordered 136 aircraft: 110 single-seat and 26 twin-seat (called AMX-T); the Brazilian Air Force ordered 56 aircraft. On April 19th, 1989, the first AMX was officially delivered to the Italian Air Force.

The first operational squadron of the Italian Air Force was the “103° Gruppo” of 51° Stormo, formed in November 1989.

In 2005, the Italian Air Force launched an upgrade programme (ACOL Aggionamento Capacità Operative e Logistiche – Operational and Logistical Capability Upgrade) for 55 of its still operative AMXs adding a new laser Inertial Navigation System, new cockpit displays and allowing the aircraft to drop Joint Direct Attack Munition (JDAM) guided bombs. In 2007, Embraer began a major midlife upgrade programme and modernisation of 53 Brazilian Air Force AMX A-1s, focusing on avionics systems and new armament additions aimed to extend the lifespan of the fleet.

Operational history 

The first operative missions in combat theatre for the AMX took place in 1995 when six AMXs from ItAF “103° Gruppo” were assigned to operations over Bosnia during Operation Deny Flight. The ItAF AMXs were then deployed to support IFOR peacekeepers in Bosnia.

The AMX was also used in the Kosovo War in 1999.

In November 2009, four ItAF AMXs joined operations in Afghanistan to take part in reconnaissance missions on behalf of the coalition, replacing the Italian IDS Tornados, flying more than 700 combat missions by the end of 2010.

In the Afghan theatre, the AMXs excelled in their ability to share digital electro-optical and infrared sensor information with ground troops in real time. This provided valuable reconnaissance information and helped to minimize threat exposure. After the last combat sortie in May 2014, the remaining AMXs flew back to Italy in June 2014.

In 2011, Italian AMX aircraft were deployed during the military intervention in Libya. During operations over Libya, the AMX aircraft was used for the first time to listen, targeting pods paired with Paveway and JDAM-guided bombs.

Later, in early 2016, due to Libya's declining stability, Italy deployed four AMX fighters and other additional aircraft to Trapani-Birgi Airbase in Sicily.

Italian AMXs also supported Operation Inherent Resolve over Iraq and Syria.